admiralty point

by melonbar92

this past monday, my friend seb and i decided to go on a hike to admiralty point in port coquitlam. one of the first things we saw when we were starting the trail was a big yellow ‘BEAR CAUTION’ sign. lucky for me, seb came equipped with a bear bell and we didn’t end up seeing any furry creatures during our time there. (but funny story, a day or two later, my sister and mom were going for a walk in our neighbourhood and they saw a bear right outside our house! someone should put a ‘BEAR CAUTION’ sign in our complex. and hand out complimentary bear bells whenever someone moves in. along with a cookie and maybe a twenty dollar bill so they don’t get scared and leave immediately).

the ground was damp from the previous day’s rain and every few minutes, we would hear the sound of our shoes squeaking and slipping and losing grip on the leaves beneath our soles. but it was perfect and the rain made everything smell extra woodsy and tree-esque. at many turns, it felt like we were going through a porthole into a studio ghibli universe. i mean, if totoro were going to live anywhere in the lower mainland, it would probably be poco right? (totoro in pocoro) (kekeke).

we took two breaks, once to eat snacks and a second to journal by the water. these korean sweet potato snacks are one of my favourite things in the world (seb: is that potato holding a potato?). even as i write this blog post, there’s an unopened bag of sweet potato snacks by my side. even if i’m not eating them, i just appreciate its company.

by the end of our hike, the sun came out to say see you later. it was honestly a very much needed sabbath day and i felt more hopeful than i have in awhile. during our journal break, seb shared with me the psalm of the day from his prayer book. it was psalm 19 and reading it, hearing it out loud, and thinking about it made my heart stir, like something inside me was sparking back to life. it is a mystery to me how the word of the lord can be so alive and have the power to also bring things to life around it; this is something i’ve been learning and thinking about lately. more desired than gold and sweeter than the drippings of a honeycomb, his presence is healing and unexpectedly comforting and vast.

thank you for the trees and the trails and the words that you speak. i hope to find myself in its folds again, and again and again and again.